Walter J. Knight

September 30, 2010

Walter J. Knight
1923-2010

Services will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 9 at the East Line Street Cemetery in Bishop for Walter J. Knight.
Born Sept. 6, 1923 in Pomeroy, Wash, Wally, as he was known to his friends, died Sept. 18, 2010. He was 87.
Wally lived on Catalina Island for a number of years, graduating from high school there in 1941. While in high school on Catalina, he was a bat boy for the Chicago Cubs, who spent spring training there. He loved that time and Catalina Island still remained a very favorite topic. He maintained friends there for years.
Wally married the love of his life, Barbara Jean Kugler, in 1942. They were married 67 years. Barbara Jean died in April of 2009.
Wally enlisted in the Army right after they were married and found himself in Africa, India and China during his enlistment. He was very proud of the time he spent in the Army and as his friends and family can attest, he spoke of his experiences often.
Wally and Barbara Jean settled in Temple City and raised their family. As a young married man, he was a cabinet maker, which he used to obtain a job building wooden pallets for Day & Night Mfg.
While there he began a 30-plus-year career that included a supervisory position for 20 of those years.
He was a member of the SPEBSQSA (Barber Shop Singing in America) for more than 35 years. He served as the San Gabriel Chapter as president on more than one occasion. Wally loved barber shop singing.
Wally lived in Bishop for 21 years and is probably best remembered for his cabinet making and almost daily early morning visits to Schat’s Bakkery for a visit with his friends and his “Wally” doughnut.
Wally and Barbara Jean are survived by their three sons and daughters-in-law, Tim and Rhona of Eugene, Ore., Greg and Marilee of Big Pine and Gil and Carrie of Chalfant Valley; granddaughters, Heidi Knight Meigs and husband Toby and children, Nicholas and Savannah of Eugene, Melanie O’Kniser and husband Andy and daughter Lucy, also of Eugene, and Wendy Knight and daughters Megan and Kelsey of Bishop; grandsons, Russell Knight and wife, Irene and children, Anna and Ryan of Santa Clarita and Andrew Knight and wife Bonnie and daughter Semalee of Monrovia.